View source for Asgard

{{about|the location in Nordic mythology|other uses}}
{{short description|Home of the gods in Nordic mythology}}
'''Asgard''' ([[Old Norse]]: '''''Ásgarðr'''''; "Enclosure of the [[Æsir]]") is a location associated with the gods in [[Nordic mythology]]. It appears in several [[Old Norse literature |Old Norse sagas and mythological texts]], including the [[Eddas]], however it has also been suggested to be referred to indirectly in some of these sources. It is described as the fortified home of the [[Æsir]] gods and is often associated with gold imagery and contains many other locations known in [[Nordic mythology]] such as [[Valhöll]], [[Iðavöllr]] and [[Hlidskjálf]]. 

In some [[Euhemerism|euhemeristic]] accounts, Asgard is portrayed as being a city in Asia or [[Troy]], however in other accounts that likely more accurately reflect its conception in [[Old Norse religion]], it is depicted as not conforming to a naturalistic geographical position. In these latter accounts, it is found in a range of locations such as over the rainbow bridge [[Bifröst]], in the middle of the world and over the sea.

== Etymology ==
The [[Compound (linguistics)|compound]] word ''Ásgarðr'' combines [[Old Norse]] ''{{linktext|áss}}'' ("god") and {{langx|non|garðr|label=none}} ("enclosure").{{sfn|Lindow|2002}} Possible anglicisations include: Ásgarthr, Ásgard, Ásegard, Ásgardr, Asgardr, Ásgarth, Asgarth, Esageard, and Ásgardhr.{{sfn|Encyclopedia Britannica, Asgard}}

== Attestations ==
=== The Poetic Edda ===
Asgard is named twice in [[Eddic poetry]].{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=20}} The first case is in ''[[Hymiskviða]]'', when [[Thor]] and [[Týr]] journey from Asgard to [[Hymir]]'s hall to obtain a cauldron large enough to brew beer for a feast for [[Ægir]] and the gods.{{sfn|Orchard|2011|p=77|loc = Hymiskvida: The song of Hymir, stanza 7}}{{sfn|Bellows|1923|loc= Þrymskviða, stanza 17}}{{sfn|Simek|2008|pp=167–169}} The second instance is in ''[[Þrymskviða]]'' when [[Loki]] is attempting to convince Thor to dress up as [[Freyja]] in order to get back [[Mjölnir]] by claiming that without his hammer to protect them, [[jötnar]] would soon be living in Asgard.{{sfn|Bellows|1923|loc= Þrymskviða, stanza 17}} 

''[[Grímnismál]]'' contains among its cosmological descriptions, a number of abodes of the gods, such as [[Álfheim]], [[Nóatún (mythology)|Nóatún]] and [[Valhalla]], which some scholars have identified as being in Asgard. Asgard is not mentioned at any point in the poem.{{sfn|Simek|2008|pp=8,235,329}}{{sfn|Mattioli|2018|p=102}} Furthermore, ''[[Völuspá]]'' references [[Iðavöllr]], one of the most common meeting places of Æsir gods, which in ''[[Gylfaginning]]'', [[Snorri Sturluson|Snorri]] locates in the centre of Asgard.{{sfn|Boult|1948}}{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc=Gylfaginning, chapter 14}}

=== The Prose Edda ===
==== Prologue ====
The [[Prose Edda]]'s [[euhemeristic]] prologue portrays the Æsir gods as people who travelled from the East to northern territories.{{sfn|Sturluson|Byock|2005}} According to Snorri, Asgard represented the town of [[Troy]] before Greek warriors overtook it. After the defeat, Trojans moved to [[northern Europe]], where they became a dominant group due to their "advanced technologies and culture".{{sfn|Sturluson|Byock|2005}} Eventually, other tribes began to perceive the Trojans and their leader Trór ([[Thor]] in Old Norse) as gods.{{sfn|Lindow|2002}}

==== Gylfaginning ====
In ''[[Gylfaginning]]'', Snorri Sturluson describes how during the creation of the world, the gods made the earth and surrounded it with the sea. They made the sky from the skull of [[Ymir]] and settled the {{lang|non|jötnar}} on the shores of the earth. They set down the brows of Ymir, forming [[Midgard]], and in the centre of the world they built Asgard, which he identifies as [[Troy]]:{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc= Gylfaginning, chapter 8, 9}}
{| width="100%"
! width="50%" | [[Old Norse]] text{{sfn|Gylfaginning (ON)|loc=Chapter 9}}
! width="50%" | [[Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur|Brodeur]] translation{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc=Gylfaginning, chapter 9}}
|-
|
{{lang|non|Þar næst gerðu þeir sér borg í miðjum heimi, er kölluð er Ásgarðr. Þat köllum vér Trója. Þar byggðu goðin ok ættir þeira, ok gerðust þaðan af mörg tíðendi ok greinir bæði á jörðu ok í lofti. Þar er einn staðr, er [[Hliðskjálf]] heitir, ok þá er [[Óðinn]] settist þar í hásæti, þá sá hann of alla heima ok hvers manns athæfi ok vissi alla hluti, þá er hann sá.}}
|
Next they made for themselves in the middle of the world a city which is called Ásgard; men call it Troy. There dwelt the gods and their kindred; and many tidings and tales of it have come to pass both on earth and aloft. There is one abode called [[Hlidskjálf]], and when [[Odin|Allfather]] sat in the high-seat there, he looked out over the whole world and saw every man's acts, and knew all things which he saw.
|}

After Asgard is made, the gods then built a [[Heathen hof|hof]] named [[Glaðsheimr]] at [[Iðavöllr]], in the centre of the burg, or walled city, with a high seat for Odin and twelve seats for other gods.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc= Gylfaginning, chapter 14}} It is described as like gold both on the inside and the outside, and as the best of all buildings in the world.{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=112}} They also built [[Vingólf]] for the female gods, which is described as both a hall and a [[hörgr]], and a forge with which they crafted objects from gold.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc=Gylfaginning, chapter 14}} After [[Ragnarök]], some gods such as [[Váli]] and [[Baldr]] will meet at Iðavöllr where Asgard once stood and discuss matters together. There they will also find in the grass the golden [[chess pieces]] that the [[Æsir]] had once owned.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc= Gylfaginning, chapter 53}}

Later, the section describes how an unnamed [[jötunn]] came to the gods with his stallion, [[Svaðilfari]] and offered help in building a burg for the gods in three winters, asking in return for the sun, moon, and marriage with [[Freyja]]. Despite Freyja's opposition, together the gods agree to fulfill his request if he completes his work in just one winter. As time goes on, the gods grow desperate as it becomes apparent that the jötunn will construct the burg on time. To their surprise, his stallion contributes much of the progress, swiftly moving boulders and rocks. To deal with the problem, [[Loki]] comes up with a plan whereupon he changes his appearance to that of a mare, and distracts Svaðilfari to slow down construction.{{sfn|Fontenrose|1983}} Without the help of his stallion, the builder realises he cannot complete his task in time and goes into a rage, revealing his identity as a jötunn. Thor then kills the builder with [[Mjöllnir]], before any harm to the gods is done.{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc=Gylfaginning, chapter 42}} The chapter does not explicitly name Asgard as the fortress but they are commonly identified by scholars.{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=108}}

In ''Gylfaginning'', the central cosmic [[Sacred trees and groves in Germanic paganism and mythology|tree]] [[Yggdrasil]] is described as having three roots that hold it up; one of these goes to the Æsir, which has been interpreted as meaning Asgard. In ''Grímnismál'', this root instead reaches over the realm of men.{{sfn|Crawford|2015}}{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=375}} The bridge [[Bifröst]] is told to span from the heavens to the earth and over it the Æsir cross each day to hold council beneath Yggdrasil at the [[Urðarbrunnr]]. Based on this, Bifröst is commonly interpreted as the bridge to Asgard.{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=36}}

==== Skáldskaparmál ====
Asgard is mentioned briefly throughout ''[[Skáldskaparmál]]'' as the name for the home of the Æsir, as in ''Gylfaginning''.{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=20}} In this section, a number of locations are described as lying within Asgard including Valhalla, and in front of its doors, the golden grove [[Glasir]].{{sfn|Simek|2008|p=113}} It also records a [[name for Thor]] as 'Defender of Ásgard' ({{langx|non|verjandi Ásgarðs}}).{{sfn|Sturluson|2018|loc=11. Kennings for Thor}}{{sfn|Skáldskaparmál|loc=Chapter 11}}

=== Ynglinga Saga ===
In the [[Ynglinga saga|''Ynglinga'' saga]], found in [[Heimskringla]], [[Snorri Sturluson|Snorri]] describes Asgard as a city in Asia, based on a perceived, but erroneous, connection between the words for Asia and Æsir. In the opening stanzas of the Saga of the Ynglings, Asgard is the capital of Asaland, a section of Asia east of the river Tana-kvísl or Vana-Kvísl (kvísl is "arm"), which Snorri explains is the river Tanais (now Don), flowing into the Black Sea. Odin then leaves to settle in the northern part of the world and leaves his brothers [[Vili and Vé]] to rule over the city. When the [[euhemerised]] Odin dies, the account states that the Swedes believed he had returned to Asgard and would live there forever.{{sfn|Laing|1961|pp=8–13}}

==Interpretation and discussion==
Cosmology in Old Norse religion is presented in a vague and often contradictory manner when viewed from a naturalistic standpoint. Snorri places Asgard in the centre of the world, surrounded by Midgard and then the lands inhabited by {{lang|non|jötnar}}, all of which are finally encircled by the sea. He also locates the homes of the gods in the heavens. This had led to the proposition of a system of concentric circles, centred on Asgard or Yggdrasil, and sometimes with a vertical axis, leading upwards towards the heavens. There is debate between scholars over whether the gods were conceived of as living in the heavens, with some aligning their views with Snorri, and others proposing that he at times presents the system in a Christian framework and that this organisation is not seen in either Eddic or [[skaldic poetry]]. The concept of attempting to create a spatial cosmological model has itself been criticised by scholars who argue that the oral traditions did not form a naturalistic, structured system that aimed to be internally geographically consistent. An alternative proposal is that the world should be conceived of as a number of realms connected by passages that cannot be typically traversed. This would explain how Asgard can be located both to the east and west of the realm of men, over the sea and over Bifröst.{{sfn|Heide|2014|pp=103–104,125–127}}

It has been noted that the tendency to link Asgard to Troy is part of a wider European cultural practice of claiming Trojan origins for one's culture, first seen in the ''[[Aeneid]]'' and also featuring in [[Geoffrey of Monmouth]]'s [[Historia Regum Britanniae|''Historia regum Britanniae'']] for the founding of [[Great Britain|Britain]].{{sfn|Fontenrose|1983|p=56}} 

== Depictions in popular culture ==
===In film===
Asgard is depicted in the 1989 film comedy film ''[[Erik the Viking]]'' as a frozen wasteland dominated by the Halls of Valhalla on a high plateau. In the film the [[Æsir]] are depicted as spoilt children <ref>{{cite web |title= Erik the Viking (1989) |url= https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/erik_the_viking_1989 |website= [[Rotten Tomatoes]] |access-date= 9 January 2024 }}</ref>

===In comics===
Thor first appeared in the [[Marvel Universe]] within comic series ''[[Journey into Mystery]]'' in the issues #83 during August 1962. Following this release, he becomes one of the central figures in the comics along with Loki and Odin. In the [[Marvel Cinematic Universe]], Thor and Loki make their first appearance together in the 2011 film [[Thor (film)|''Thor'']]. After that, Thor becomes a regular character in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reappears in several films, including the [[Avengers (comics)|''Avengers'']] series. Asgard becomes the central element of the film ''[[Thor: Ragnarok]]'', where it is destroyed following the Old Norse mythos. These and other Norse mythology elements also appear in video games, TV series, and books based in and on the Marvel Universe, although these depictions do not closely follow historical sources.{{cn|date=August 2023}}

===In video games===
Asgard is an explorable realm in the video game [[God of War Ragnarök|''God of War: Ragnarök'']], a sequel to 2018's Norse-themed [[God of War (2018 video game)|''God of War'']].{{sfn|God Of War Interview}}

In the ''[[Assassin's Creed Valhalla]]'' video game, Asgard is featured as part of a "vision quest".{{sfn|PC Games AC}}

==See also==
* [[Mount Olympus]] – home of the Olympian gods

== Citations ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Bibliography==
===Primary===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite book| translator-last1 = Bellows| translator-first1 = Henry Adams| translator-link1 = Henry Adams Bellows (businessman) | date = 1923| chapter = Lays of the Gods: Voluspo| editor1-last = Bellows| editor1-first = Henry Adams| editor1-link = Henry Adams Bellows (businessman) | title = The Poetic Edda| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=OjZcAAAAMAAJ | series = Scandinavian classics, vols. 21, 22 | location = New York | publisher  = American-Scandinavian Foundation | publication-date = 1926 | page = 3 | access-date = 9 August 2021 }}
* {{Cite book|last=Crawford|first=Jackson|title=The Poetic Edda : stories of the Norse Gods and heroes|publisher=Hackett Publishing Company, Inc|year=2015|isbn=978-1-62466-358-1|location=Chicago|pages=12–14, 47–58, 68, 95|oclc=905921490}}
* {{cite book |last1=Laing |first1=Samuel |title=Heimskringla. Part two, Sagas of the Norse Kings |date=1961 |publisher=Dent |location=London |isbn=0460008471}}
* {{cite book |last1=Orchard |first1=Andy | author-link= Andy Orchard |title=The Elder Edda : a book of Viking lore |date=2011 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=London |isbn=9780141393728}}
* {{Cite book|last1=Sturluson|first1=Snorri|title=The prose Edda: Norse mythology|last2=Byock|first2=Jesse L.|publisher=Penguin Classics|year=2005|isbn=0-14-044755-5|location=London|pages=30–48, 55–78, 80–83, 93–94, 97|oclc=59352542}}
* {{cite book |last1=Sturluson |first1=Snorri |translator-last=Brodeur|translator-first=Arthur Gilchrist|title=The Prose Edda |date=2018 |publisher=Franklin Classics Trade Press |isbn=9780344335013}}
* {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|Gylfaginning (ON)}}| title=Gylfaginning (Old Norse) |url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/Gylfaginning |website=heimskringla.no |access-date=4 October 2022}}
* {{cite web | title=Skaldskáparmál (Old Norse) |ref={{harvid|Skáldskaparmál}} |url=https://heimskringla.no/wiki/Sk%C3%A1ldskaparm%C3%A1l |website=heimskringla.no |access-date=8 October 2022}}
{{refend}}

===Secondary===
{{refbegin}}
* {{Cite book|last= Boult|first= Katherine|title= Asgard and the Norse Heroes|publisher= University of Michigan Library|year= 1948|isbn= 978-1176204492|location= Ann Arbor|pages= 21, 56–59, 72, 82–90, 121–123}}
* {{Cite journal|last=Fontenrose|first=Joseph|date=1983|title=The Building of the City Walls: Troy and Asgard|journal=The Journal of American Folklore|volume=96|issue=379|pages=53–63|doi=10.2307/539834|jstor=539834|issn=0021-8715}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Heide |first1=Eldar |title=Contradictory cosmology in Old Norse myth and religion – but still a system? |journal=Maal og Minne |date=2014 |volume=106 |issue=1 |url=http://ojs.novus.no/index.php/MOM/article/view/226 |access-date=23 April 2022 |language=no |issn=1890-5455}}
* {{Cite book|last= Lindow|first=John|title=Norse mythology : a guide to the Gods, heroes, rituals, and beliefs|publisher=Oxford University Press|date=2002|isbn= 9786610532490 |location=Oxford|oclc=1136323846|pages =13, 37, 54–56}}
* {{cite journal |last1=Mattioli |first1=Vittorio |title=Grímnismál : a critical edition |journal=University of St Andrews |date=2018 |s2cid=165843311 |language=en}}
* {{cite book |last1=Simek |first1=Rudolf | author-link = Rudolf Simek | translator1-last = Hall | translator-first = Angela |title=A Dictionary of Northern Mythology |date=2008 |publisher=BOYE6 |isbn=9780859915137}}
* {{Cite web|ref={{SfnRef|Encyclopedia Britannica, Asgard}}|title= Asgard {{!}} Norse mythology|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/Asgard|access-date=2020-06-03 |website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}
* {{cite web |ref={{SfnRef|PC Games AC}}|url=https://www.pcgamesn.com/assassins-creed-valhalla/asgard-jotunheim |title=You can visit Asgard and Jotunheim in Assassin's Creed Valhalla |website=PCGamesN |date=15 October 2020 }}
* {{cite AV media|ref={{SfnRef|God Of War Interview}}|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=nOJrXHLQPx8|title=God Of War Ragnarök Developer Interview|website=IGN|date=9 September 2021}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
* [https://myndir.uvic.ca/Asgrd01.html MyNDIR (My Norse Digital Image Repository)] Illustrations of Asgard from manuscripts and early print books.

{{Norse paganism footer}}
{{Heaven}}


[[Category:Places in Norse mythology]]